Miao Ancient Songs
01 · Historical Records
The Zhanwang Zhuan is an epic of the Siyin Miao passed down orally from generation to generation, recounting the wars and migration of the heroic ancestor Zhanwang. It is said that Zhanwang, living in the heavenly court, cultivated himself from childhood beside his father Rongse Mang and gained magic power; the Yellow Dragon then made war on his son Wang Dai, and Zhanwang had to lead his nine sons and their followers out of the capital Shengliao, migrating with difficulty until they finally settled in Qingzhen and Xiuwen in Guizhou. In 2010 the Zhanwang Zhuan came to scholars' attention. Its content covers the splitting of heaven and earth, the origin of humanity, the marriage of brother and sister, production and life and war and migration, rich in imagination with sharply drawn and full main characters and a plot full of ups and downs. Its passages singing of the places of migration are concrete and detailed, and the hundred and forty-two place names appearing in it can all be matched to present-day place names, something not found in any other known Miao ancient song or epic. The Siyin Miao believe their ancestors' souls gather in the drum, and to sacrifice the heroic ancestor Zhanwang and the dead they hold a great drum-sacrifice festival every twelve years, all taking part in full dress. The Baomao family lineage can presently be traced to the Guangxu reign of the Qing. The Zhanwang Zhuan is the Siyin Miao's epic of ethnic origin and important material for studying their ethnic, migration and war history.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
It is sung by the “wurao” (song master) and “baomao” (altar master, who must be male) in the Siyin Miao sub-branch vernacular of western Miao at Siyin Miao weddings, funerals, house-buildings and drum-sacrifice festivals. The Siyin Miao are named for the four seal-like patterns on their women's dress and live in Qingzhen city, Xiuwen county, Wudang district and Guanshanhu district of Guiyang, Guizhou. The Zhanwang Zhuan runs to about eight thousand lines in ten chapters: when grown, Rongse Mang sent him down to the world to be tempered; Zhanwang led his people to open up territory and married his sister, raising nine sons and five daughters; afterwards he obtained the most precious treasure, the dragon heart, became king and made his capital at Shengliao, winning the people's hearts; originally at peace with the world, he was repeatedly invaded by the Yellow Dragon and Red Dragon with their followers; after three great battles he recovered his original territory and, no longer fond of war, retired to the fields; thereafter Zhanwang's daughter was deceived, causing him to lose the treasured dragon heart. In singing the rhythm is simple and the melody plain, sombre and stirring, and only at this time can the Zhanwang Zhuan be sung in full.
Splitting Heaven and Earth
One of the ten chapters of the Zhanwang Zhuan, telling the creation and splitting of heaven and earth.
The Origin of Humanity
One of the ten chapters of the Zhanwang Zhuan.
The Marriage of Brother and Sister
One of the ten chapters of the Zhanwang Zhuan.
Production and Life
One of the ten chapters of the Zhanwang Zhuan.
War and Migration
The core chapter of the Zhanwang Zhuan, singing Zhanwang's wars and migration; the hundred and forty-two place names in it can all be matched to present-day names.
Singing at the Drum-Sacrifice Festival
The Siyin Miao hold a great drum-sacrifice festival every twelve years, and only then can the Zhanwang Zhuan be sung in full.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
The Zhanwang Zhuan is the creation and migration epic of the Siyin Miao sub-branch, circulating in Qingzhen city, Xiuwen county, Wudang district and Guanshanhu district of Guiyang, Guizhou; the Siyin Miao are named for the four seal-like patterns on their women's dress, and the singing mostly uses the Siyin Miao sub-branch vernacular of western Miao, transmitted by the “wurao” (song master) and “baomao” (altar master) within hereditary families.
Other submitting regions for the same item: Miao Ancient Songs · Miao Ancient Songs · Miao Ancient Songs.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
At present the Siyin Miao groups transmitting the Zhanwang Zhuan are mainly the “wurao” and “baomao”, chiefly by family transmission. From the recollections of elders of the local song-master families three principal lineages have been collated—the Wang Qiguang line of Longwo village, the Wang Fagui line of Gudangbai village and the Wang Guoqiang line of Zhongzhai village. It is the historical and cultural memory deep in the blood of the Siyin Miao, expressing their cosmology of harmonious coexistence with nature and their approach to popular social management, with fairly high historical, cultural and artistic value.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Wang Anjiang 01-0001
- Liu Yonghong 01-0002
- Long Tongzhen 01-0003
- Wang Mingzhi 01-0004
- Zhang Dingqiang 03-0778
- Tian Jinfeng 05-1987
- Wang Chaomei
- Wang Qiguang
- Zhang Hongzhen
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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